BBC NEWS | Americas | US 'plans huge Saudi arms deal'

BBC NEWS | Americas | US 'plans huge Saudi arms deal': "The United States is reported to be preparing a major arms deal with Saudi Arabia worth $20bn over the next decade.

It is said to be part of a strategy for countering Iran's growing strength."

BBC NEWS | Middle East | US to sell bunker bombs to Israel

BBC NEWS | Middle East | US to sell bunker bombs to Israel: "The US government is proposing a $30m deal selling up to 100 laser-guided bunker-busting bombs to Israel.

The GBU-28 is a 2,000-kg conventional weapon with a powerful warhead that can burrow through six metres (20 feet) of concrete or 30 metres of earth.

The sale has gone ahead despite concern that Israel might use the weapon for a unilateral attack against Iran."

Saudis’ Role in Iraq Frustrates U.S. Officials - New York Times

Saudis’ Role in Iraq Frustrates U.S. Officials - New York Times: "Of an estimated 60 to 80 foreign fighters who enter Iraq each month, American military and intelligence officials say that nearly half are coming from Saudi Arabia and that the Saudis have not done enough to stem the flow."

WorldNetDaily: IRS loses challenge to prove tax liability

WorldNetDaily: IRS loses challenge to prove tax liability: "Cryer's encounter with tax law began more than a decade ago when a friend told him the income tax was sham. Cryer started researching, hoping to keep his friend out of trouble. But his conclusions, after years of research, were exactly what his friend told him.

He researched not only tax laws, but also the documents pertaining to the drafting of the U.S. Constitution as well as the first income tax.

He said throughout his battle, he's offered at every turn to pay taxes if the IRS could show him the authorization, and that never has happened."

Press TV

Press TV: "According to Fars news agency, the news website quoted German security officials as saying, 'Saudi Arabia began its nuclear program in the 1990s, and especially after Pakistan joined the 'nuclear club' in 1998.'

It also quoted John Pike, a US military analyst, as saying that Saudi Arabia purchased advanced equipment which have usage in nuclear programs from Pakistan and paid full cost for them.

The website also reported that a number of London- and Washington-based Saudi dissidents confirmed the news. 'The Saudi government had gathered a great number of Iraqi nuclear scientists in southern Riyadh and built for them special residential complexes to conduct nuclear studies there.'

The Iraqi scientists advised Saudi Arabia not to disclose its nuclear program even to its main ally, the United States. "

Technology Review: Robotic Insect Takes Off

Technology Review: Robotic Insect Takes Off: "A life-size, robotic fly has taken flight at Harvard University. Weighing only 60 milligrams, with a wingspan of three centimeters, the tiny robot's movements are modeled on those of a real fly. While much work remains to be done on the mechanical insect, the researchers say that such small flying machines could one day be used as spies, or for detecting harmful chemicals."

Swedish Woman Gets Superfast Internet

Swedish Woman Gets Superfast Internet: "In less than 2 seconds, Lothberg can download a full-length movie on her home computer — many thousand times faster than most residential connections, said Hafsteinn Jonsson, head of the Karlstad city network unit.

Jonsson and Lothberg's son, Peter, worked together to install the connection.

The speed is reached using a new modulation technique that allows the sending of data between two routers placed up to 1,240 miles apart, without any transponders in between, Jonsson said.

'We wanted to show that that there are no limitations to Internet speed,' he said."

Pope: Creation vs. evolution an ‘absurdity’ - Focus on the Vatican - MSNBC.com

Pope: Creation vs. evolution an ‘absurdity’ - Focus on the Vatican - MSNBC.com: "The pope, leader of some 1.1 billion Roman Catholics worldwide, said: “We must respect the interior laws of creation, of this Earth, to learn these laws and obey them if we want to survive.”"

BBC NEWS | Americas | US army veterans sue government

BBC NEWS | Americas | US army veterans sue government: "A coalition of US military veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is suing the US government.

The class-action lawsuit on behalf of hundreds of thousands of veterans claims they have been denied disability pay and mental health treatment."

Diet soft drinks linked to health risks: study

Diet soft drinks linked to health risks: study: "A huge U.S. study of middle-aged adults has found that drinking more than one soft drink a day — even a sugar-free diet brand — may be associated with an elevated risk for metabolic syndrome, a cluster of factors that significantly boosts the chance of having a heart attack or stroke and developing diabetes."